Trump, Putin plan Ukraine peace talks without Kyiv

The phone call 'illustrated the deepening alliance between Trump and Putin'

(Image credit: Jorge Silva / Pool / AFP via Getty Images)

What happened

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he had a "lengthy and highly productive phone call" with Russian President Vladimir Putin and they agreed to "start negotiations immediately" on ending Russia's war in Ukraine. Trump said he planned to meet with Putin in the "not-too-distant future," probably in Saudi Arabia and without Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump called Zelenskyy after speaking with Putin to "inform him of the conversation."

Who said what

"I think President Putin wants peace, and President Zelensky wants peace. And I want peace," Trump told reporters. The call with Putin, which the Kremlin said lasted about 90 minutes and included an invitation to visit Moscow, "illustrated the deepening alliance between Trump and Putin in ways that are likely to unsettle Zelenskyy," The Washington Post said. Trump "offered major concessions to Putin even before the negotiation has formally begun," including ruling out NATO membership for Ukraine and deeming it "unlikely" Kyiv would get back all its seized territory. Russia "took a lot of land and they fought for that land," he said.

Zelenskyy said he was "grateful" for Trump's call and Kyiv was "defining our joint steps with America to stop Russian aggression and guarantee a reliable, lasting peace." Putin has "heaped praise" on Trump since his election victory in the hope the new president would "back away from supporting Ukraine," The New York Times said. Wednesday's phone call came a day after Russia exchanged a U.S. teacher being held on drug charges for convicted Russian cybercriminal Alexander Vinnik.

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"A single phone call will not magically end the war in Ukraine," Steve Rosenberg said at the BBC, but "in many ways Putin has already got what he wants — the chance to negotiate directly with the United States on Ukraine, possibly over the heads of Kyiv and Europe" — and an exit from the "political wilderness" he's inhabited as a "pariah" since invading Ukraine.

What next?

Trump said U.S. negotiations will initially be carried out by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Mideast special envoy Steve Witkoff and national security adviser Michael Waltz.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.